Carlton Fields Adds Preeminent Project Management Executive

Carlton Fields is pleased to announce that C. Peter Hitson joined the firm as Director of Legal Project and Practice Management.

A noted project management executive in the legal industry, Hitson has more than 25 years of legal, claims, and financial services experience. He brings to Carlton Fields deep experience in Lean and Six Sigma disciplines that will help continue to drive Carlton Fields’ innovative legal project management (LPM) objectives.

“We’re delighted to welcome Pete to Carlton Fields,” said Gary L. Sasso, President & CEO. “Developing more rigor in Legal Project Management is essential to enable law firms today to respond creatively to client demands for better value, more predictability and transparency in pricing, creative and cost-effective alternative fee arrangements, and process improvement.”

Hitson will expand upon the firm’s LPM initiatives by collaborating with firm leadership and attorneys on cutting-edge project management tools and techniques, improving project scoping, planning, and budgeting.

“Carlton Fields is a law firm known for its creative, inclusive, and collegial atmosphere, and its transparent and collaborative approach with clients,” said Hitson. “This is the kind of environment where creative and challenging concepts like LPM are known to thrive, yielding bottom-line benefits for both the firm and our clients.”

Previously, Hitson was Director, Legal Process Innovation at Wilson Elser, where he led strategic innovation, operational excellence, and sophisticated use of data and market knowledge. Prior to working at Wilson Elser, he was Assistant Vice President, Legal Practices, Support & Audit for The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc., where he was charged with selection, retention, evaluation, and management of outside counsel and other legal vendor relationships. He oversaw The Hartford’s legal invoice review services and legal e-billing initiative. He was also national manager of panel counsel and managing attorney for claims. Prior to his work at The Hartford, Hitson was in private practice.

Hitson has earned and received a number of awards and distinctions for his work in LPM, including Legal Lean Sigma White Belt, Six Sigma Green Belt Training Program, CLM Certified Litigation Management Professional Certificate Program at NYU, and National Institute of Trial Advocacy Training Program.

He is a member of the DRI: The Voice of the Defense Bar and the Claims and Litigation Management Alliance.

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